Charges laid but orchestrators behind synagogue attack remain a mystery

The investigation into the terror attack on the Adass Israel synagogue has stalled, as the person or group who ordered the firebombing concealed their involvement by using encryption technology and untraceable thugs for hire.

Only one arrest linked to the attack has been made, but no terrorism charges have been laid since the firebombing in Ripponlea on December 6, 2024. Underworld and police sources have described how criminals used sophisticated encryption to protect themselves.

The Adass Israel synagogue bombing shocked Australia.

A police source familiar with the joint counterterrorism taskforce (JCTT) investigation but not authorised to speak publicly about its operations said the investigation had “hit a wall” and it remained unclear who ordered the attack or why.

The investigation had been able to identify only low-level suspects allegedly responsible for setting the fire, who were suspected violent criminals and street gang members for hire with no known political or ideological affiliations.

Anyone arrested would probably face only arson charges because there was not enough evidence to substantiate terrorism charges, the source said.

On Wednesday, a 20-year-old Williamstown man was charged over his alleged role in the theft of a blue VW Golf, which was allegedly used by those involved in the arson attack and in other serious crimes across Victoria.

A man was arrested on Wednesday.Credit: AFP

The man faces charges including theft of a motor vehicle and failing to comply with an order to provide access to applications on his mobile telephone.

Victoria Police and the Australian Federal Police said in a statement to this masthead that the joint counterterrorism taskforce had “previously stated last year’s arson was likely a politically motivated attack”.

“This remains the position of the JCTT, who continue to investigate the fire at the Adass Israel synagogue as a terrorist attack.”

The synagogue building remains closed more than seven months after the attack. The federal and state governments have pledged more than $31 million towards rebuilding the synagogue and improving its security.

The arson attack on the Adass Israel synagogue in December struck fear in Melbourne’s Jewish community.Credit: Arsineh Houspian

On December 6, 2024, three hooded and masked men in an allegedly stolen blue Volkswagen Golf drove to the synagogue on Glen Eira Avenue about 4.10am. After using an axe to smash open the front door, they poured petrol from jerry cans and then set it alight. One of the men, in a white face mask, filmed the attack on his mobile phone.

There were two members of the congregation inside the synagogue when the fire was lit, but both escaped the blaze, which was universally regarded as an antisemitic attack and condemned by Premier Jacinta Allan and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Three days later, the firebombing was declared a “likely a terrorist incident” by a federal and state law enforcement committee, meaning it was assigned to the joint counterterrorism taskforce, which can access sweeping detention, search and surveillance powers, and seek assistance from spies at the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation.

A major break in the case appeared to come in May when the taskforce revealed the car used in the firebombing of Adass Israel had been tracked to a series of other crimes, including a drive-by shooting in Bundoora on the same night and the firebombing of Lux Nightclub in Chapel Street, South Yarra, a fortnight before.

A second source, who was familiar with the taskforce investigation but not authorised to speak publicly, said the car had been identified fairly soon after the Adass Israel attack but the decision was made to track the vehicle in the hope of identifying the person or group ultimately responsible.

Several media outlets also withheld reporting the information to avoid compromising the investigation.

While the car was seized by police in December, it was determined the two men, aged 21 and 22, who were arrested in May for the arson attack on the nightclub were not connected to the firebombing at Adass Israel.

At the time, Tess Walsh, counterterrorism command assistant commissioner, called the alleged link between the blue Golf and the synagogue case a breakthrough.

“It’s like a new methodology for us – it’s a communal crime car potentially used by multiple groups and individuals in the commission of a range of different offences,” she said.

“We believe there are multiple offenders directly and indirectly linked to the synagogue arson, and our terrorism investigation into their actions continues. It is just a matter of time before police knock on your door. It is in your interest to come forward now.”

The case then appeared to go cold. Behind the scenes, police had been probing connections between Melbourne’s nearly two-year-old “tobacco war” and the attack at the synagogue because they bore many of the same hallmarks: young, violent offenders – some from street gangs – who were haphazardly torching seemingly unconnected targets using stolen cars.

The motives for burning the tobacco shops appeared clear, but fires were also being lit at restaurants, auto shops, gyms, fruit stands and grocery stores, factories and homes.

An underworld source, who is familiar with how the firebombing-for-hire system works but cannot be identified publicly, said a “network” had been operating using encryption and specialised apps that allowed for the “totally anonymous” commissioning of attacks.

“If you’re connected, you can gain access to what’s like an ordering system to contract out missions – arsons, shootings, stolen cars, guns. You don’t know who you’re hiring. Or maybe you hire someone who hires someone who hires someone. It’s all done using encrypted apps. It creates a protective shield.

“The people getting the hotties [stolen cars] have no idea what they are being used for. It’s an order to fill – put the car at X and leave. Then that car gets used in whatever job.

“Often the guys setting the fires don’t know the exact target until a couple of hours before. They’re nobodies – disposable street guys who’ll do anything for money. They can’t say anything because they don’t know anything.”

In the case of the Lux Nightclub, Bundoora drive-by shooting and Adass Israel attacks, those using the stolen car had blundered by not setting fire to it to destroy the evidence, as is common for these underworld networks. Instead, the car was reused, passed on or sold for use in other crimes.

In June, the joint counterterrorism taskforce staged a series of raids at three homes in Melbourne’s northern suburbs related to the Adass Israel synagogue investigation. There were no arrests or charges.

The operation was an attempt to spook the suspects and their associates into disposing of evidence or contacting others who might be involved, but the tactic failed to generate fresh leads.

“The investigation is being treated as a priority, including the involvement of significant resources across all agencies,” the taskforce spokesperson said. “An update will be provided at an appropriate time.”

Allan, in December, said the formal terror declaration meant additional powers and resources for those investigating the attack, which she described as “one of the most evil acts we’ve seen”.

“We’re here today as a consequence of one of the most evil acts we’ve seen, one of the most evil acts [of antisemitism] and now, as has been determined by the policing agencies, a likely act of terrorism,” she said.

Albanese has described the attack as “an outrage” and an “act of hate”.

In January, a caravan containing explosives was found by law enforcement on the outskirts of Sydney in what was believed to be a plot to target the city’s Jewish community.

Investigations later revealed it was planted in a “fake terrorism plot” as part of a bid by organised crime figures to provide information to authorities about a false attack to receive favourable treatment for their co-operation.

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